NEW ORLEANS (LA)
Times-Picayune [New Orleans LA]
November 21, 2025
By Stephanie Riegel
Co-Adjutor Archbishop James Checchio, who will lead the Archdiocese of New Orleans out of its five-year bankruptcy and into the next chapter of its 232-year history, testified Friday in the church’s bankruptcy hearing, vowing to uphold new measures to guard against clergy sex abuse “with all my heart and energy I have.”
The measures, part of the proposed settlement plan at issue in the three-week trial, would establish new policies for reporting and handling allegations of clergy sex abuse and create a public database detailing past incidents of abuse.
During his brief time on the witness stand, Checchio also apologized to an abuse survivor, Pat Moody, on behalf of the archdiocese. Moody, who heads the committee that represents more than 650 survivors of clergy sex abuse in the case, had testified moments earlier about her experience and the importance of the new policies that will go into effect if the settlement is confirmed.
“Thank you for what you have been doing for years,” Checchio said. “I am sorry you have had to go through this. It is going to help make things better for the future. I pray for you and for our church, too.”
Checchio’s testimony came one day after his predecessor, Archbishop Gregory Aymond, took the stand in the trial, technically known as a confirmation hearing, which could resolve the long-running bankruptcy case by the end of the year.
Attorneys for the archdiocese and for clergy abuse survivors are asking U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Meredith Grabill to confirm a joint settlement plan that would distribute funds from a $230 million trust to more than 600 abuse survivors over several years.
The plan would also establish the “non-monetary” provisions regarding abuse reporting and transparency
In marked contrast to Aymond, 76, who appeared solemn and uncomfortable during more than an hour of intense cross examination Thursday, the 59-year-old Checchio looked at ease answering questions from the church’s lawyer, Pat Vance.
Checchio briefly outlined policies he helped implement in his former position as Bishop of the Diocese of Metuchen, New Jersey, where all clergy abuse allegations — even those made by adults — are immediately referred to law enforcement and transparent record keeping is strictly enforced.
He also said his busy schedule since arriving in New Orleans one week ago had precluded him from reading the 274-page settlement, and elicited chuckles in the courtroom with a reference to his stint as chaplain of the Philadelphia Eagles.
‘Not the welcome I’d want’
Checchio was named by Pope Leo XIV as Aymond’s successor in September, and was officially welcomed at a mass on Tuesday at St. Louis Cathedral. He has said the transitional role of co-adjutor will allow him to share duties with Aymond, who will focus on wrapping up the bankruptcy while Checchio tends to ministerial and administrative duties.
While the worst of the long-running case may be over, Checchio will continue to deal with the fallout well into his tenure. He inherits a historic archdiocese with an aging and shrinking population, more than two dozen of its 104 parishes operating at a loss, and a surplus of old buildings that are difficult to sell.
He also will need to restore faith in the church among New Orleans’ half a million Roman Catholics, following years of scandal and pain resulting from the clergy abuse crisis and bankruptcy.
Grabill seemed to acknowledge that dynamic Friday.
“Welcome to New Orleans,” she told Checchio. “This has been going on for a long time and based on your testimony I am pleased that you’re here.”
Checchio replied, saying, “It’s not part of the welcoming I would envision or want, but I am happy to be here.”
Enforcing the plan
Before Checchio’s testimony, Grabill returned to an issue she raised Thursday with Aymond on the stand — how the court will be able to enforce the “non-monetary” provisions in the plan once the bankruptcy case is over.
“If this plan is confirmed the court is becoming a partner with this organization to enforce the promises it makes,” Grabill said to Andrew Caine, an attorney for the abuse survivors. “How does that happen?”
Caine pointed to passage in the plan requiring the archdiocese to hire outside experts, including a child protection consultant, youth protection advisors and a youth protection “executive.” The plan also includes more transparent abuse reporting protocols, a whistle blower policy and the appointment of at least two abuse survivors to an Internal Review Board that will review abuse allegations.
Grabill said she wants to continue discussing the provisions with attorneys for both sides in the remaining days of the trial.
Grabill also heard on Friday from Moody, who explained her role as chair of the court-appointed committee that has represented the abuse survivors during the bankruptcy case and settlement talks.
She recounted her experience of being sexually abused by a priest, since deceased, between the ages of 8 and 10, and said she did not remember the abuse until years later, in 2018, when Aymond released a list of credibly accused clergy.
In the years since, she said she has struggled to bring change to the church and has served on the committee to try to help others who have suffered with clergy abuse.
“All I kept thinking is somebody has to do something to make changes to protect children. I wanted the church to be a safe place to go,” Moody said.
Moody also disclosed that she has agreed to serve on the Internal Review Board if the settlement is confirmed.
“I am just so determined to make sure anyone involved in making decisions has an understanding of what a survivor has been through,” she said. “I have never come from a place of hate and I think the person that serves as a survivor on this IRB needs to be someone like me.”
Email Stephanie Riegel at stephanie.riegel@theadvocate.com.